Machine for coring cabbages or the like



April 29, 1930.

I. 5. SHARPE MACHINE FOR CORING CABBAGES OR THE LIKE Filed Nov. 4, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet April 29, 1930.

I. G. SHARPE MACHINE FOR CURING CABBAGES OR THE LIKE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 4, 1927 April 29, 1930;

IQG. SHARPE MACHINE FOR CORING CABBAGES OR THE LIKE Filed Nov. 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet mummy.

April 29, 1930. |.-G. sHARPr;

'mcl-mis on comm ABBAGES OR THE LIKE F iled Nov. 4, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Apr. 29, 1930 1 I f I g I v I rims. SHARPE, OF LIBERTY CENTER, OHIO MACHINE FOB CURING GABBAGES OR THE LIKE Application filed November 4, 1927; Seria1No.'230,960.

This invention relates to automatic cutting trally' of the frame and having bearing in the I I machines, but more particularly to machines connecting braces 2 at the upperend, and a forcoringcabbages inwhich a cuttingelement suitable bearing 3 at the lower end portion is forced into the-core'of the cabbage to shred ofthe frame is a' rotating drive shaft 4. Sur- 6 the same, and thereafter is reversed to rerounding the shaft 4 for the major portion of 55 move the cutting element from the cabbage its length is a sleeve 5, to wliich'is secured a without removing the cabbage core, although Worm wheel 6, meshing with a worm 7 on' a a different knife may be used'to remove the horizontal shaft8. Mounted on the shaft 8 15a heart, if desired. 7 pulley wheel 9 which is connected through a 10 Heretofore it has been customary in coring belt 10 with 'apulley'whe'el'll on the shaft 12. 60

cabbages for the operator to' holdthe cabbage The shaft 12 has a pulley wheel 13, which'may and force thesame into con-tact with the rotatbe connected by a belt 14 with any suitable ing knife, the operation of which-is usually source of power, such as a-n'electric motor. controlled by a foot pedal. lit is obvious that Secured to the shaft 12 is a beveled gear 15 y 15 great are must be taken by the rator in meshing with a gear 16 on the vertical shaft 65 coring small cabbages, or the knife will lead 4- I11 H PdaIi B With'the above described I from. a directed course causing the operators drive, it will be understood that the shaft 4 hand to come in contact with it. It is further is rapidly rotated,and thesleeve 5 is'rotated apparent that this method is not onlydangerat a much slower speed.

ous, but is most inefficient, because the expense Secured to the upper end portion of shaft 1 70 is relatively great and quantity of production y a c ew 18 is a ring-like member or is limited. mair-r driver 17, which rotateswith the shaft.

Obj ts ofthi 'inv ti are to produce a The main driver 17' includes an outer drive simple and efiicient machine for coring cab- 18 a an inner dTiV9Tim519 andlhe rims 'b f imil or analogous ki 1 8 and 19 are concentric and spacedv laterally 75 which is entirely automatic in operation, and 1 iz ntally from each other; At suitably 1 which is safe to operate; and to produee'a ma- I spaced intervals are vertically arched. spanchine of the above'character havingithe' new i161 mem ers 20, which join the rims 18' and and improved features of arrangement and The p 6 0 pl' vi c-(lletfib constru tio h einaft d ibed; ance for the upward movement of the cutter e0 which Other objects and advantages will h i v, driving shafts, aswill hereinafter appear. after appear. f Rotatablewith the sleeve 5 are spider's21 The'invention'is shown by way of illusand 2,'Wlii l1 are arranged in vertically tration in 'the accompanying drawings, i spaced relation with-the arms thereofdis- Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional elevation of a p s 1- nd 22 Serve to receive and supmachine constructed in acgordancewith my POPE the cutting heads 23, there being 150111 invention; Fig.2 is a top plan view of the employed in thismachine. Thecutting'heads machine shown in Fig; 1; Fig; 3 1 tr 23 revolve about the sleeve5 with the-spiders 5 verse section on the line 33 off 1; Fig.4 21 and 22, and travel in a directionopposite so I i a fragmentary 'sectional'elevation of a eutto the movement of'the mainidriverl'i. Each ting head Figs. 5, 6, and 7 are fragmentary cutting head is adapted-to be driven from the l views of' alternate form of mechanism main driver 17, a roller being; employed fricfor shifting'the friction roller, and Fig. 8 is a i n l'ly o engage One rim or another of the section on the line 88 of Fig. 6.,

The illustratedembodiment of the invenone'direction or the other. According to tion comprises aframe having channel beam the present machine, the cuttingelernent is uprights or supports'l, there being three in rotated only during the cutting period,after number connected to thetop at'the upper ends which, rotation ceases.

posed in alignment with each. other. The

main driver to rotate the cutting element in thereofby horizontal braces 2." Disposed cen- Supported on a collar 2401; the? sleeve-dis a table to receive cabbages C, which are properly aligned by the operator with respect to the cutting elements of each head, so that as the cutting elements are brought into operation, the cabbages are properly positioned for cutting.

Each cutting head comprises an outer nonrotatable bearing sleeve 26, one end of which extends loosely through an opening 27 in the spider 21, and the opposite end thereof extends loosely through an opening 28 in the spider 22. The bearing sleeve 26 is pivotally connected by removable trunnions 28 to the spider 21 so that the sleeve may be rocked horizontally in one direction or another. Disposedr within the bearing sleeve 26 is a rotatable driving sleeve 29 having diametricallyfopposed elongate slots 30 to receive a pin 31'0n a driven shaft 32. Engaging the lower end portion of the inner rotatable sleeve 29 is a collar 33 secured thereto by a set screw, and this collar prevents upward movement of the sleeve 29. V

Secured on to the upper end of the driving sleeve 29 is a drive roller 34 having a suit ablefriction-producing facing, and which is positioned in the space between the rims 18 and 19 of the main driver 17 By virtue of the pivotal mounting of the outer sleeve 26, the head is adapted to be swung to one side to engage one rim for rotating the cutting element in one direction or swung to the op posite rim for driving the cutting element in the reverse direction, as will hereinafter be apparent.

Fixed to the lower end portion of the driven shaft 32 is a sleeve or chuck 35 to receive the shank of the cutter element 36, which may be of the usual construction for coring cabbages. It is manifest from the above description that the cutter element 36 .rnay be rotated in one direct-ion or another,

and during such rotation, moved vertically because of the slotted construction of the inner driving sleeve 29 and shaft 32. The cutter element is shown in Fig. 4 in raised position with the pin 31 in the extreme upper position of the slots 30.

moved relatively to each other to force the.

cutter element in and out'of the cabbage. It

' is necessary that the change in direction of vii rotation be instantaneous so as to complete the cutting operation as promptly as possible. For this reason the friction roller must be quickly moved from one rim to the other, and for this purpose, a block 37 is slidable longitudinally. on the outer end portion of each 7 arm of the spider 22, a track 38 being providedto guide each block 37. Mounted on the block 37 is a vertically disposed roller 39, and pivoted to each side of the block 37 is an arm 40 which extends through a lug 41 on a collar 42 loosely mounted on the sleeve 26, supporting collar 43 on the sleeve 26 holding the collar 42 in position. Disposed on opposite sides of the lug 41 are coil'springs 44, thereby serving to hold the roller 39 in the desired position.

As the spider 22 rotates with the sleeve 5, the roller- 39 engages a cam track 44 suitably connected to a brace 45 fixed to the legs 1. Each roller 39 successively engages the outer side of the cam track 44, and moves the respective cutting head outwardly so that the friction roller 34 engages the outer rim 18. By engagement of the roller 34 with the outer rim 18 which is rapidly rotated by the drive shaft 4, it is apparent that the cutter element 36 is constantly driven. So long as the roller 39 remains in engagement with the cam track 44, the cutter element 36 will be rotated in one direction by the outer rim 18.

After the roller 39 has completed its travel, over the cam track 44, it engages the inner side of a second cam track 46 also connected to the brace 45. The cam track 46 forces the roller 39 inwardly and swings the cutter head abruptly away from the rim 18 and into engagement with the inner rim 19, thereby instantaneously reversing the direction of rotation of the cutter element. It will thus be seen that the change in rotation from one direction to the other takes place suddenly, in fact the change is made so suddenly that it is almost impossible to be seen with the naked eye. During the remainder of the travel of the cutter head, the friction roller 34 travels freely between the inner and outer rims 19 table 25, to be brought into engagement with a cabbage, and after the cabbage core is cut, it is lifted away from the cabbage. The mechanism for vertically moving the cutting element, is arranged to operate concomitantly with the rotating of the cutter head, so that when each cutter element is moved downwardly, it'is rotated in one direction, and as the cutter element is moved upwardly, it is rotated in the opposite direction.

The vertical movement of each cutter element is controlled independently of the remainder, and for this purpose each cutter head is provided with a vertically disposed arm 47 having a forked end engaging an annular groove 48 in the chuck sleeve 35. The arm 47- is in sliding engagement with the adjustable thereon.

a circular track 50, which is supported by braces 51 suitably secured to the'frame legs 1. Beneath the cam track 44 the circular track gradually inclines downwardly, and

the lowermost portion ofthe track is substantially in alignment with the outer end of the cam track 44. 7

The circular track 50 then inclines grad,-

ually upwardly and the angle of this inclination is slightly less than that of the down- Upward movement of the shaft 32 is permit-V ted by the pin and slot connection, and clearance for such movement is provided by the respective arched spanner member'20.

An alternative mechanism for shifting'the" drive roller 34'is shown in Figs. .5 to 8 inwhich a supporting plate 52 is attached to the underside of each armof the spider 22,,

and each plate is formed with an opening 53 through which the sleeves 26, 29 and32 extend. Surrounding the sleeve 26 below the supporting'plate 52 is. a collar 54 loosely mounted thereon, and having a pair of vertically disposed cam rollers'55 and 56, which are arranged approximately 90 apart at one side of the diameter of the collar. Engaging opposite sides oft-he collar 54 are arms 57 and 58, pivotally' connected at their inner ends to theplate 52, and yieldingly urged toward each other by a coil spring 29'Which connects their opposite ends, stops 60 being provided on the plate 52 against which limit the inward movement of the arms.

Fixe'dly secured to the collar 54 and projecting therefrom isan arm 61, which is adapted to move the collar in one direction or theother. Assuming, that the spider 22 is moving in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 2, a dog or projection 62 on the frame is arranged at the top of the downward incline of the circular track 50 and upon engagement of the arm 61 withthe projection 62, the collar 54 is rotated in a counter clockwise direction so that the cam roller 56 swings the arm 58 away from the collar, and as the'rol'ler 55 has moved :away from the arm-57, the coil spring operates to swing the friction roller 34- and associated parts into engagement with the outer rim 18, as shown 'in Fig. 2.

At the bottom ofthe track incline, another dogor projection 63 'is positioned to be en- .gaged by a reverse lever for swinging the frictionroller 34 into engagement with the.

. inner rim 19. As shown, the reverse lever comprises an arm 64 pivoted to the plate 52, and connected to anintermediate portionof V the arm 64 is a link 65 pivoted to a, lug 66 on 3 the cam collar 54. WVhen the arm '64 engages the dog 63' the collar '54 is rotated in I a clockwisedirection, and'the roller 55 forces the arm-'5? outwardly t'o permit-the coil'spring 59 to swing thefriction roller and associated parts into engagement with the inner rotat ing rim 19 it being observed that the cam roller 56 is moved away from the arm 58.

In order to returnthe parts to normal position so that the friction r ol1er34'is not in operative engagement with either riin, a

third dog 66 is positionedadjacent the upper extremity of the upper incline of the track to be engaged by the arms 61. This stop isso arranged that the travel. of thespider 22 operates to move the'cam sleeve sufficiently 7 to' place the cam rollers 55 and 56 in engagement with their respective arms 57 and 58. In this manner it will be seen that'the arms 57 and 58 hold the cam rollers in neutral position, in which thefriction roller 34 is? removed from driving engagement with either rim. Y I

f Althoughl have shown and described my invention in connection with amachine for coring cabbages, it is to .be understood'that I do not restrict the use of the machine to cabbages, as itisequally well adapted as, a

cutting instrumentality in connection with other commodities and objects. It is further to be understood that the above description is given by way of illustration andnotof limitation, and numerous changes may be effected in details of construction, arrangement and operation without departing from the spirit of the invention, especially as defined in the appended claims. It is further to be understood that number of spider arms may be varied, as desired,in accordance with the number of cutting heads employed.

VVh'at I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: a

1. In a machine of the character described,

ion

a frame, a cutter'head carried by said frame,

said cutter head including afriction roller, laterally spaced concentric driving annuli between which said friction roller is arranged, means for rotating said annuli in the samedirection, and means to'swing said fric- 7 tion roller to engage one annulus for driving said roller in onedirection and after a predetermined period abruptly to move said rollerto engage the other annulus.

2. In amachine of the character described, a rotatable frame, cutter heads on said frame, each cutter head including a friction roller andan axially reciprocable shaft connected for rotation with saidfriction roller, lateraly spaced concentric driving annuli, means for rapidly rotating said drive annu'liin the same direction, means to cause said roller to engage one annulus for rotating the roller for a predetermined period in one direction, and then abruptly to swing the roller'into engagement with "the other annulus "for rotating the roller in the opposite direction is rotated in one direct-ion and away from each other when said cutting element is rotating in the opposite direction.

3.111 a machine of the character described,

a frame, acutter head carried by said frame including a friction roller, means for pivoting said head to said frame, laterally spaced concentric drive annuli between which said roller is arranged, means for causing said roller to operatively engage one annulus or the other for causing said roller to rotate in one direction or the other, said means including a cam collar and lever arms projecting from said collar, and projectionson said'main frame engageab-le with said arms during the rotation of said rotatable frame for causing said friction roller successively to engage one annulus and'then the other annulus and then to be positioned between the two annuli.

L In a coring machine, a series of cutters, means to impart traveling movement to said cutters, a work table, means to move the table in accordance with the traveling movement of said cutters, means to impart relative movements to said table and cutters to cause each cutter to approach and move away from the table during a predetermined portion of the travel thereof, and means to rotate said cutters only at said predetermined portion in one direction during relative movement toward the table and in the opposite direction during relative movement away from the table.

5. In combination with a work table and leans to operate same, a series of normally inoperative corers, means to impart traveling movement to said corers as a unit with respect to the movement of the work table,

means to effect relative vertical movement between the table and corers, means to rotate each corer clockwise during said vertical movement in one direction and during said movement of the corers as a unit, and means to rotate each corer counter-clockwise duringsaid vertical movement in the opposite direction and during said movement of the corers as a unit. 6. in a coring machine, a normally inoperative corer, means on one side of the corer to rotate same in one direction, means on the opposite side of the corer to rotate same in the opposite direction, and automatic means operable at a predetermined period to effect relative movement between the corer and each of the rotating means.

7. A coring machine having a vertically movable corer, said corer comprising a non rotatable sleeve, a rotatable sleeve within said non-rotatable sleeve, a driven shaft in said inner sleeve,'a connection between said shaft and' inner-sleeve to permit vertical sliding movement during rotation thereof, a cutter element connected to said shaft, and means to rotate said inner sleeve in one direction for a predetermined period, and then abruptly reverse the direction of rotation for a predetermined period.

8. A coring machine having a vertically movable corer, said corer comprising a nonrotatable sleeve, a rotatable sleeve within said non-rotatable sleeve, a driven shaft in said inner sleeve, a connection between said shaft and inner sleeve to permit vertical sliding movement during rotation thereof, a cutter element connected to said shaft, and means for moving said driven shaft and cutter element downwardly during rotation in one direction and upwardly during rotation in the opposite direction;

9. A coring machine having a vertically movable corer, said corer comprising a pair of telescoping sleeves, one sleeve being rotatable and the other sleeve being non-rotatable, a shaft within said sleeve, a connection between said shaft and saidrotatable sleeve to permit sliding movement during rotation thereof, a cutter element connected to rotate with said shaft, means on one side of said rotatable sleeve for rotating the same in one direction, a second means on the other side of said rotatable sleeve for rotating the same in the opposite direction, and means for moving the rotatable sleeve into operative engagement with the first driving means for a predetermined period, and then abruptly to move the rotatable sleeve into engagement with said second means for a predetermined period. 10. A coring machine comprising a vertically movable corer, said corer comprising a non-rotatable sleeve, means for pivotally mounting one end portion of said sleeve, a rotatable sleeve within said first sleeve, a shaft within saidinner sleeve, a conn ction between said shaft and inner sleeve'to permit vertical sliding movement during rotation thereof, a cutter element connected to be driven by said shaft,'means on one side of said inner sleeve for rotating the sleeve in one direction, a second means on the other side of said inner sleeve to rotate same in the opposite direction, and means to swing. the inner sleeve into operative engagement wit said first driving means for a predetermined period, and then abruptly to swing the same into engagement with the second means for a predetermined period.

11. In a coring machine, a pair of vertically spaced rotatable supporting members, means to rotate such supporting members, a corer carried by said members, said corer comprising a non-rotatable sleeve loosely connected to said supporting members, a pivotal connection between said sleeve and one of said supporting members, a rotatable sleeve within said non-rotatable sleeve, :1

55 a rotatable and axially movable shaft,.- a

driven shaft within said rotatable. sleeve, a

connection between said inner shaft and sleeve to permit vertical sliding movements during rotation thereof, a cutter element connected to be driven by said shaft, means to rotate said inner sleeve in one direction and then in the opposite direction, and means to move said cutter element downwardly. during rotation thereof in one direction and upwardly during rotation in the opposite direction, said movements taking place during the rotating movement of said supporting members.

12. In a coring machine, a vertically movable corer, means on one side of said corer to rotate the same in one direction, means horizontally spaced from sa1d first means on the opposite side of the corer to rotatethe same in the opposite direction, means to effect relative movement between said corer and each of sa1d rotating means for causing I said corer to rotate in one direction for a predetermined period, and then abruptly change to rotation inthe opposite direction for a predetermined period, and means to impart downward movement to sa1d corer durlng rotatlon thereof in one directlon and upward movement during rotation in the op posite direction.

13. In a coring machine, a vertically mov-- able corer, means on one side of said corer to rotate the same 1n one directlon, means horizontally spaced from said first means on the opposite side ofthe corer to rotate the same movement during rotation in the opposite direction, and means to impart traveling movement to said corer during the rotating and vertical movements thereof.

14. In a coring machine having a corer, means to impart traveling movement to said corer, meanson one side of said corerto ro- 'tate the samev in one direction, means spaced horizontally from said first rotating means and on the opposite side thereof to rotate v said corer in the opposite direction, and cam means operable during the traveling movement of the corer to move the same into engagement with one rotating means for a definite period, and then. abruptly to move the corer into engagement with the other rotating means for a definite period.

. 15. In a machine of the character described, a movable frame, a normally inoperative cutter head on said frame, said cutter head including a rotary cutting element and work-supporting table, a track having contiguous downwardly and upwardly inclined portions, a connection betweensaid shaft and track for causing said shaft to move toward and away from the table during movement of said frame, and means operable at a predetermined period in the movement of said frame to rotate said cutting head in one direction as the same approaches the table, and in the opposite direction as the same is moved away from the table.

mally inoperative corers, a work holder,

means to move the series so-as to successively cause the corers to travel past a given operative location, and means to render each corer v operative as samereaches said location.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name to this specification. V;

IRA G. SHARPE.

16. In a coring machine, a series of nor- 

